Cancel Culture

Cancel culture, also called call-out culture, is a cultural phenomenon and a form of freedom of association where people criticize or disassociate from an individual who is thought to have acted or spoken in an unacceptable manner. It usually includes calls over social media for the target to be ostracized, boycotted, shunned or fired. This shunning may extend to social or professional circles‍— whether on social media or in person‍— with most high-profile incidents involving those with influence in media or politics. More generally, cancel culture includes changes in who one honors, such as the removal of monuments from a public square, removing books from school curricula, changing place names, etc. Such subjects are said to have been "canceled". While the careers of some public figures have been impacted by boycotts‍— widely described as "cancellation"⁠— others who have complained of cancellation successfully continued their careers.